


Gives You Hell

by Imtrouble



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-25
Updated: 2018-03-25
Packaged: 2019-04-08 03:59:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14096733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Imtrouble/pseuds/Imtrouble
Summary: Theo looks back on his life and his women.





	Gives You Hell

The young woman glared at the retreating couple who, seconds before, had been wrapped around each other against a wall in a quiet Ministry corridor. She was there for a private Christmas party that was being held in one of the more opulent function rooms hidden within the Ministry’s walls. She wished now that she had been defiant and had not eagerly accepted her boss’ invitation to attend. Now she was stuck watching her former lover wrapped around a Mudblood. Not just any Mudblood, either. The Mudblood. She wished she could take back all that she had done. 

\-----------------------------

Hermione Granger squirmed against her boyfriend, “Theo, stop it! She’s watching.” 

“Good,” he growled, “Granger you know you like being watched and you especially like making her jealous.” She continued to squirm and giggle breathlessly as he placed a hand on her breast, squeezing lightly, whilst his mouth took control over hers, drawing her into a demanding kiss. She responded perfectly to him, she always did. 

A gong echoed somewhere nearby and they broke apart although their hands became entwined. They rushed back to the function room where dinner was about to be served.

\----------------------------------

Theodore Nott sat near the head of the table. It was two days until Christmas Eve and he was thoroughly enjoying the season of goodwill. He struck gold a year ago, literally. He relaxed back in his chair, taking a sip of his mead, and let his mind wander, the sound of chatter fading around him. 

\------

Two years ago at this exact party he had been a different man, only invited along by one of his friends in an attempt to cheer him up and get him out of the ditch he seemed to have found himself in. 

Theodore Nott had been a happy man once. He had had a pretty girlfriend who he loved and he had a mediocre job at St. Mungo’s that paid shit, but he at least had job satisfaction. He worked in one of the labs at St. Mungo’s helping to brew potions. He wasn’t a potions master, but he was effectively brewing very simple potions day in and day out. He knew that sometimes the simple potions saved lives. 

He had been happy with his life. His girlfriend could be demanding and often wanted expensive things, which Theo did his best to provide for her. He had hoped that his adoration for her would make up for the monetary things he couldn’t provide. She wasn’t exactly poor herself. Her family had money, just not as much as she desired it would appear.

She refused to work and also refused to live in his house. Apparently, a cottage wasn’t up to the same standards of a manor. Yet Theo could see past her bratty nature and managed to relate to the girl underneath the hardened exterior and loved that girl. 

It would seem, however, that the snobbish Daphne was determined to squash out the girl underneath. Two months before Christmas she left him, for a man who was shoulder deep in Galleons and who was much older. 

Aiden Flint. 

Marcus Flint’s estranged father. He was a man who was ailing in health at the worst of times and a small sickly-looking man in the best of times. In a few words, he was the complete opposite of his burly son.

Theo knew the reason Daphne left was because he couldn’t give her what she wanted. He couldn’t buy her pretty dresses made from expensive silks, he couldn’t buy a manor like some of his friends, and he did not wish to live with his father. 

She left him and he was devastated. He had given her everything he had to offer and she had thrown it back in his face. 

He started to turn up late for work, drunk at times even. The downward spiral he found himself in landed him without a job, friends who were fed up with his behaviour, and then, to top it all off, he lost his cottage and was made to move back in with his father. 

Draco Malfoy had been his long-suffering best friend for a few years now, and while his other friends deserted him in his hour of need, Draco hadn’t. 

Theo remembered their conversation the night Draco invited him to this party two years ago:

“Theo mate, look at yourself! Daphne sodding Greengrass isn’t worth this! She’s a stuck-up bint.” 

“Your fucking married to her sister Malfoy! Is Astoria a stuck-up bint as well?” Theo sneered back.

To Draco’s credit, he hadn’t punched Theo, and by the look on his friend’s face he had wanted to. 

“Nott, I’m warning you: keep your mouth in line about my wife. She is nothing like her sister. She certainly doesn’t have the desperate need for gold like her sister does. The only way for Daphne to be happy would be to marry a goblin!”

“Now stop throwing your life away over some skirt and sort yourself out. You can start by having a wash, getting dressed up, and coming to this boring Christmas function with me. Astoria has gotten to the uncomfortable stage of pregnancy and pretty much told me to fuck off and go by myself. Since it will be full of stuffy Ministry people, my wife speaks a lot of sense. Unfortunately, men cannot have children, so I am lumbered with going, and you’re coming with me.”

Theo tried to protest but Draco manhandled him into the shower. He then threw the rest of Theo’s firewhiskey into the fire, which caused a loud bang. Loud enough that Theo stopped fighting and just let Draco drag him around.

\--------------

Theo was jerked from his reminiscing by a hand that had found his crotch. He looked to his left and saw Granger smirking suggestively at him. 

He leaned in to her so only she could hear him whisper, “Really Granger! We haven’t even had dessert yet. Contain yourself, lioness.” She laughed and removed her hand just in time. A colleague of hers tapped her on the shoulder and dragged her into conversation and then asked if she would mind a dance. 

Theo nodded at the man when he silently asked permission, and he watched his girlfriend being led away before he fell back into his memories.

\-----------

Theo had been skulking around the edge of the posh party, feeling completely out of place, and in some of Draco’s dress robes because he hadn’t been able to find his own. He had probably thrown them out in anger. He was taking a sip from his champagne flute when somebody crashed into him, spilling the contents all over him. He managed to stop his assailant from falling over, however, and that was when he realised that it was a woman. He helped her to right herself, and then she turned around to face him.

“I am so sorry! I’m not great with heels,” she laughed, “and I think I managed to trip over a chair!”

“Err… that’s okay,” Theo had mumbled. 

This woman was gorgeous. She seemed vaguely familiar to Theo, yet he couldn’t quite place her face. She was tanned and wore an emerald green satin dress. Her long hair looked soft and her pretty brown curls complimented her slim frame. 

“I’m Hermione. Hermione Granger,” she said as she held out her hand to greet him properly. 

“Th... Theodore Nott,” he stuttered finally. He knew he had known her. Of course, she was the Gryffindor princess. How stupid of him. He was surprised at her very Slytherin-like outfit.

“You’re one of Draco’s friends, right?” She queried.

“Yes. Since when are you on first name terms with Malfoy? Last I knew, you hated the sight of each other.”

She laughed, and Theo thought it was one of the loveliest sounds that he had ever heard.

“Draco and I put our past behind us a long time ago, we have worked together, at the Ministry, side by side for a few years now. We managed to get past the hatred and appreciate each other’s brilliant minds eventually!”

“You talking about me gorgeous Granger?” Draco’s voice came from behind Theo.  
He smirked at his best mate. “So, you have met the dashing Mr. Nott then.”

“Well it was less of me meeting him and more of me railroading over him. I tripped,” Hermione admitted.

“You always have been a klutz Granger. The dress suits you by the way, Astoria was right.”

“You must thank her again for me Draco. It truly is lovely, she picked out a fantastic birthday present!”

“Wait a minute,” Theo interrupted. “You’re friends with Astoria as well?” He was shocked. How had he not bumped into this woman before if she was friends with his best mate and his ex-girlfriend’s sister? 

“Hermione and Astoria were friends before I married her,” Draco explained. “Astoria used to be Hermione’s assistant. It was with the help of Astoria that we finally set aside our differences. Don’t you remember Hermione attending our wedding?” Draco asked.

Theo didn’t, but if he remembered correctly, Draco’s wedding hadn’t been a happy day for him. He had nothing but grief from Daphne the entire day about how she should have been the first one to wed because she was the older sister and all. He had drunk the day away.

“No, I don’t. It’s nice to meet you properly Hermione.”

She smiled up at him and said, “It’s nice to meet you too Theo. Would you care to dance?”

With that dance Theo’s life changed. She wanted to know all about his life and, for once, Theo shared it easily. He told her about Daphne, about his job, his ambitions, and many other things he hadn’t realised he had felt until she had asked.

They danced and talked to the early hours. When it was time to leave, he leaned in and kissed her cheek goodbye, but he wished he had kissed her lips instead. 

He later found out from Draco that she was spoken for. Oliver Wood, the bastard, had made her his many years ago, and Draco expected them to get engaged soon. It had been five years since they started dating. Wood was Pureblood, after all, and still lived by certain traditions. He thought that would be the last time he would see her, but how wrong he was. 

\---------

Theo was dragged from his thoughts again as a loud round of clapping started. He realised the speeches had begun. He excused himself from the table quickly, needing to use the men’s room. He was walking back through the corridors when he felt a small hand slide down his back. 

He smiled. “You really are a horny little lioness, aren’t you? Are you telling me that I wasn’t enough for you before we came? That you can’t even wait until we finish up here?” He turned expecting to see Hermione. Instead, he was faced with Daphne. His smile immediately faded.

“What do you want?” Theo demanded.

“You. Theo, I want you back. I’m sorry for the way I behaved. I have learned my lesson, and I know how wrong I was. Please,” she begged.

“No, Daphne, you haven’t. You only want me back because Mr. Flint died and left you out of his will. That and now that I am as rich as Malfoy, you want in on some of the action.” 

As her answer, Daphne continued to pout.

“How do you find working a nine to five, Daph?”

She started to bawl then. In front of him, no less. He shook his head disgustedly and turned to walk away.

“That Mudblood doesn’t deserve you!” She snarled from behind him. “She’s only with you because you’re a Pureblood.”

Theo laughed as he continued down the corridor, but didn’t take to her bait. Daphne wasn’t worth it. 

\------------

It seemed Hermione had been listening intently that night he met her and told her all about his job aspirations and what he had hoped to do. A week later he received an owl from her with a proposal.

She worked as an Unspeakable, as did Draco. They had an opening that required someone who was good with potions. He had immediately accepted, but refused to believe it was for any other reason than he needed the job. Draco, however, thought otherwise. He saw his best mate’s face light up every time Hermione breezed into the office.

Six months into his new job, Theo was promoted and offered a very generous pay raise. He never would have dreamt that being an Unspeakable would be so profitable. 

He had become closer to Hermione, as well, and nearly fallen completely and, worse, obviously into love with her. He remembered one day in particular, she had flown into the office like a whirling dervish, and he could tell she was angry about something. 

“What’s got your knickers in a twist Granger?” Malfoy had asked in irritating fashion. 

“None of your bleeding business!” She had retorted before slamming her bag down onto her desk. She then proceeded to ignore everyone for the rest of the morning. 

Draco later informed Theo that she and Wood were having issues. When Theo asked how he could possibly know the nature of Hermione’s problems, Draco admitted Astoria had told him. 

As Hermione and Theo had become close friends, he soon learned of the issues Draco warned him about. Oliver Wood wanted children but Hermione wasn’t ready, and it seemed neither was willing to compromise. Oliver’s professional Quidditch career was nearing an end so he wanted to settle down. Hermione’s career was just taking off. He learned of their blazing rows and how Hermione quite often fled the house and stayed on friend’s couches for nights at a time. 

He jokingly offered up his if she ever needed it. Then one night, she turned up on his doorstep. She told him her relationship with Wood was over, and further, that a big part of her was pleased and she felt guilty for feeling like that.

Theo had been ecstatic. 

\--------------

“Where did you go baby?” Hermione asked as he sat down back at their table.

“I ran into Daphne.” 

“What did she want?” Her tone changed to one of annoyance. 

“Me back, apparently. She told me she had seen the error of her ways and that you only wanted me because I’m a Pureblood.”

Hermione laughed. “Yes, that’s me all over. I just need a Pureblood cock to be satisfied, after all.”

“You have a dirty mouth Granger,” he smirked.

“Well you don’t usually complain Theo. Can we go home yet?”

“Stop whining pretty girl, you know we can’t. You haven’t even accepted your award yet.”

“Why can’t Draco accept it on my behalf? He prefers the limelight anyway!”

“Because that dress doesn’t suit him nearly as well as you, and his hair isn’t half as frizzy in the morning. Plus, he has a much more nasal voice.” Theo smirked as Draco glared at him from across the table. 

“If the wind changes, your face will be left looking like that Draco,” Theo laughed as he squeezed Hermione’s hand in his.

Right then, Hermione’s name was announced, and Theo pushed her up. She was being awarded for her “Outstanding Contribution to the Ministry”. He continued to watch her as she walked towards the stage.

\-------

That night of her break up had been the beginning for him and Hermione. Nothing had happened that night, but it had definitely paved the way.

They had begun to see each other more and innocent touches began to mean things that they hadn’t before. Then last year at this Christmas party, Theo had finally told Hermione how he felt. 

She had a look of utter shock on her face when he had blurted out the words, “I’m in love with you”. He had felt like a complete fool and wanted to run away. But, luckily, her facial expression had quickly changed from shocked to one of complete happiness. Theo thought then it might be okay after all. When she had proceeded to place her lips against his, he had known it would be.

After he had found true happiness with Hermione, it seemed everything he touched turned to gold whilst Daphne’s fortunes had certainly taken a turn for the worse. 

Marcus’ dad had died before adding Daphne to his will, so she was left with nothing. Marcus couldn’t wait to get the gold-digging Daphne out of family home and did so rather quickly and with little guilt. 

Daphne had run home to her mummy and daddy who quickly told her she needed to work because she was too old now to be without a husband and living scot free at home. Astoria had helped source Daphne a job in her old department. Daphne now struggled by, working a nine to five job with a lot less glamour in her life than she would have liked.

\---------

Applause once again awoke Theo from his reminiscing, prompting him to realise that he had missed all of Hermione’s speech. He knew he would pay for that later if she questioned him about it. It was worth it though. He had a trump card tonight that might just stun her into silence. 

\------------------------------------

The blonde girl watched as the Mudblood left the stage, and then she glanced over at Theo’s table to see her sister and brother-in-law stand clapping alongside him. She continued to watch as said Mudblood fell into the open arms of her ex-boyfriend and embraced him passionately. She watched his roaming hands as while wishing that she was in the Mudblood’s place. 

That last thought alone depressed her. She never before wanted to be like a Mudblood. She looked at Theo’s face and realised that she had never seen such contentment, lust, and happiness combined in his expressions. 

She realised he had never looked at her like that. 

Suddenly, the couple disappeared with a pop. She didn’t want to imagine what they would be doing. She turned away instead, and picked up another glass of champagne while scouting the room for rich, single wizards.

\----------------------------------

Six months later Daphne was sitting at her work desk, flipping through the pages of Witch Weekly when she came across a double spread of the wedding between Theodore Nott and Hermione Granger. The headline read:

Millionaire Nott Weds War Hero Granger


End file.
